Seniors and Librarians:Tech Skills, Security and Information Privacy

The Set UpAs reported by Pew research, “most

Americans view public libraries as

important parts of their communities

[and believe] libraries should have

programs to teach digital skills

to…seniors”. Additionally, librarians

themselves are one of the most

trusted professions – second only to

nurses. Further, senior citizens as a

population are growing – by 2050,

one in five people will be 60 years or

older.

This combination of trust and need

for digital skills created a noticeable

opportunity at Sylvan Way Library in

Bremerton. Staff observed that

there were many patrons that

needed extensive tech help

beyond the time that could

reasonably be devoted to one

patron. There was a real need for

immediate assistance at the time of

the point of service.

The ProcessOur capstone team conducted

research, observations as well as

created and deployed two surveys –

one for the patrons at Kitsap

Computing Seniors club and one for

librarians and staff at Sylvan and other

branches in KRL. We also engaged in

discussions with the Branch Manager,

Leigh Ann Winterowd and Library

Associate, Erich DeWald, who also

facilitated Kitsap Computing Seniors.

The FutureWhile our solution is targeted to this

specific community and library branch,

we believe this is a growing area of

concern for libraries and librarians

nationwide. Our staff survey

demonstrated that librarians are dealing

with personal information beyond

patron records of the typical reference

interview. As the senior population

around the world increases, there is a

real need for professional development

when it comes to engaging with senior

patrons and their technology

information needs.

The SolutionWe created a series of handouts

on a variety of devices and topics

such as email security and online

privacy for use with Kitsap

Computing Seniors and for

distribution by librarians during their

interactions with patrons. We also

created an informational handout

with recommendations on

protecting patron privacy for use

by library management and

employees.

Katrina Belton & Melissa Slocum, MLIS iSchool

Thanks to Leigh Ann Winterowd, Erich DeWald and Kitsap Computing Seniors at Kitsap Regional Library

Photo to comePhoto to come

In the past week, how often were you

approached by patrons with requests

that involve seeing their personal

information?